Arashi No Ato Ni
by sunshinelexi
Summary: Means "after the storm" in English. A thunderstorm brings back memories of Sasuke's past and leads him to an unexpected conclusion. Oneshot. Kind of sad. Very slightly NaruSasu.


**Updated:** Can you believe it, I actually found a title I like for this fic! It's now called "Arashi no Ato ni" or "After the Storm." Thanks to Pheonix09, Dragon77, and ViolentLeeLee for actually reviewing this.

**Arashi no Ato ni**

Sasuke hated thunderstorms. He was a light sleeper at the best of times, and loud noises tended to aggravate his insomnia.

The ceaseless rumbling of the thunderstorm was soon joined by the equally annoying sound of someone knocking on the door.

Not knocking. Pounding.

"Open up, Sasuke-teme! It's pouring out here!"

_Naruto_.

Sasuke groaned and pulled a pillow over his head. Naruto was the last person he wanted to see right now.

As usual, Naruto would _not_ take a hint. Rather than leaving, he began pounding on the door even harder. The dobe was giving him a headache.

Sasuke reluctantly dragged himself out of his warm, comfortable bed to answer the door.

"What are you doing here, Naruto?"

Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I fell asleep during training, and then this storm started, and-"

"I meant, what are you doing _here_? Go to your own house."

"But it's on the other side of town!" Naruto whined. "I'm gonna get even more soaked!"

"Not my problem."

Sasuke tried to shut the door on him, but Naruto blocked it with his foot.

"Aww, come on Sasuke, let me stay."

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"_Please_?"

"No."

"Puhleeezeeeee?"

Naruto bit his lip and stared up at his teammate with puppy dog eyes.

Not even an Uchiha can resist puppy dog eyes.

"…Fine."

Naruto grinned and ducked under Sasuke's arm into the warmth of his friend's home. He felt a little better now that he was out of the rain, but he was still cold. He ran his hands up and down his arms to warm them.

Sasuke's eye twitched. The dobe was dripping wet. Mud and rainwater ran down his shivering frame, making small rivulets across Sasuke's spotless floor. He would have to wipe it down again tomorrow.

"Stay there. I'll get you a towel and some clean clothes before you catch cold."

"'Kay," said Naruto happily.

OOOOOOO

Sasuke returned a few minutes later, carrying a simple black shirt, black pants, and a towel stamped with the Uchiha clan symbol. He handed the pile to Naruto.

"You can change in the bathroom. It's the first door on the right."

"Thanks, Sasuke."

"Hn."

Sasuke slowly plodded back to bed. Hopefully the dobe wouldn't keep him up too late. They had to wake up early for a mission tomorrow.

OOOOOOO

"Sasuke?" Naruto poked his head outside the bathroom. "Where are you?"

"In here, dobe," Sasuke called from his bedroom.

Naruto entered Sasuke's bedroom and flopped on the bed beside him, hugging a pillow to his chest.

"Your bed is really soft, Sasuke."

"Hn."

"Don't say 'hn,' teme!" Naruto said, throwing the pillow at Sasuke.

The pillow hit the side of Sasuke's head and dropped back onto the bed.

Naruto sighed. "You're no fun."

"Go to sleep, Naruto."

Naruto obediently rolled onto his side and closed his eyes, but the conspicuous absence of loud snoring noises let Sasuke know that his teammate was still awake.

_Oh well, at least he's not bothering me anymore._

Sasuke looked out the window and watched the rain pound against the glass.

The silence was stifling.

Suddenly, thunder crashed all around him.

A bolt of lightning struck a telephone pole next to his house.

Sasuke gasped.

OOOOOOO

_Sasuke's small feet pounded against the wet pavement as he rushed home after his first day of solo training._

_Oh, no, he thought. It's raining really hard. I hope I get back soon._

_Thunder rumbled and grumbled, frightening the five-year-old Sasuke. He tripped and skinned his knee._

"_Ow." Sasuke gingerly got to his feet, thankful that the rain hid his tears._

_That's when it happened._

_A bolt of lightning struck the tree in front of his house._

_Green and alive one instant. Blackened and dead the next._

_Sasuke screamed over and over again._

_He couldn't look away._

_Someone pulled Sasuke gently into his arms, muffling his screams._

_Sasuke looked up at his older brother._

"_Nii-san?" he sniffled._

_Itachi ruffled Sasuke's hair, giving him a small smile._

"_It's okay, Sasuke. I'll take you home now."_

OOOOOOO

Sasuke felt a pair of warm, strong arms close around him. He blinked, disoriented.

_Itachi?_ No, Itachi was gone. Naruto was the one holding him tenderly against his chest, like a lover.

Sasuke turned his face away so Naruto wouldn't see him blush.

"What are you doing, teme?" he said roughly.

"I'm protecting my widdle Sasuke-chan," Naruto teased, patting Sasuke on the head like a small child. "Is widdle Sasuke-chan afraid of the big, bad thunderstorm?"

Sasuke swatted Naruto's hand away and gave him a glare that could have culled an entire army.

But, because he was Naruto, Naruto was perfectly fine.

"I'm not afraid of thunder," Sasuke said.

Thunder rumbled nearby, as if to punctuate his words.

Naruto flinched slightly.

He hoped Sasuke didn't notice, but it was too much to hope for.

Sasuke gave Naruto an arrogant smirk.

"Then why'd you make that noise just now, huh?" Naruto asked aggressively, probing his rival for a weakness.

Sasuke sighed. "If you must know, I'm afraid of lightning."

"Why would anyone be afraid of lightning? It doesn't make any noise and it's over really quickly."

"Why would anyone be afraid of thunder? Thunder moves slowly and makes a lot of noise. Lightning strikes swiftly and silently. It can kill you in an instant."

OOOOOOO

_The arm descended, katana gleaming in the moonlight. Warm blood spattered across Sasuke's face._

_Father, dead._

_Sasuke stared into his brother's cold, lifeless eyes. He knew what was coming next._

_Mother, dead. _

_The lightning struck, and_

_once again,_

_Sasuke couldn't look away._

OOOOOOO

"Hmm… I never thought about it that way before," Naruto said thoughtfully.

"That's because you're an idiot."

"What did you say, Sasuke-teme?"

"I said you're an idiot."

"Well, at least I'm not afraid of lightning striking me _inside a house_!"

"Lightning can strike anytime, anywhere," Sasuke said softly.

But, he wasn't thinking about lightning anymore.

OOOOOOO

This story was meant to show how Sasuke associates Itachi with lightning in his mind, and how he is really, _really_ afraid of Itachi but he wants to overcome his fear so he can face his brother in battle. That's why he asks Kakashi to teach him Chidori, so he can embody the lightning and become what he most fears. Clever? Not so clever?

Please review anyway. Reviews make me smile.


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